Sure enough, after I finished speaking, Carter's cold, expressionless face softened quite a bit. He glanced at me, his voice sounding very gentle as he said, "Mm, as long as you understand. Remember to get up at five every morning, eat at six, and assemble in the courtyard at seven. But since you have to take care of Mr. Bennett, I'll give you a fifteen-minute grace period."

After saying this, he left the cabin without looking back, surrounded by a group of guards.

The door closed. I turned to glance at Smart Alec, who was secretly wiping cold sweat from his forehead, and asked curiously, "Old man, do you know who Mr. Bennett is?"

"That's strange, that cold-faced king seems to be treating you quite politely!" Old Fellow didn't answer my question, but instead asked in surprise, "What, are you related to him?"

"You're the one who's related to him. Old Fellow, you still haven't told me who Mr. Bennett is. Don't tell me it's you."

"Not your relative, yet he's so polite to you, strange... All right, all right, stop choking me, I'll tell you, I'll tell you!" Hearing him dodge the question again, a surge of anger rose in my heart. I lunged forward and grabbed his neck. Before I could speak, Smart Alec hurriedly answered, "I'm Mr. Bennett, I'm Mr. Bennett."

I let go, looking at the old man in front of me, who was rubbing his neck and gasping for breath. "Looks like you really are a bit famous. Heh, are you really the all-knowing scholar?"

"Of course! Back in the day, I, the all-knowing scholar Bennett... handsome and elegant, graceful as a jade tree—who didn't know, who wasn't aware!" Old Fellow immediately puffed out his chest and said proudly.

Before he could finish, I interrupted his boasting with a chuckle. "Enough, stop bragging. Aren't you in the same situation as me now? Both of us are prisoners waiting to die on this island, and you're even a long-tongued prisoner."

"You!" Old Fellow was so choked by my words that he couldn't speak for a while.

Just then, a loud bugle call sounded. Almost by instinct, I grabbed Old Fellow, pushed open the unlocked iron door, and rushed into the courtyard.

Strange, how did I know that bugle call was the assembly signal?

As soon as I entered the courtyard, I heard an extremely rough voice shout in my ear, "Assemble!"

In an instant, the prisoners who had been wandering lazily in the courtyard immediately lined up. I straightened my back, pulled in my stomach, put my feet together, and stood outside the line like a javelin, eyes fixed straight ahead.

Carter was still in that military uniform, his collar buttoned up, looking imposing as he strode into the courtyard. When he saw me standing outside the line, a look of surprise flashed in his eyes, and he couldn't help but stop.

"Name."

"Gavin Ford, sir!" I answered loudly.

"Age."

"Nineteen, sir!"

"Do you know the rules here?"

"Obey your orders, sir!"

"Two hundred push-ups on the spot, count out loud!"

"Yes, sir!"

Without a second thought, I immediately dropped down and started doing push-ups, counting loudly as I went: "One! Two..."

Strange, really strange. Ever since I arrived on the island, I've felt a bit off, and now I feel even stranger. There's no doubt that my answers and posture just now satisfied Carter—I could see it in his eyes. And when I counted up to one hundred and fifty, even I was shocked. Come on, a hundred and fifty push-ups—before, I'd have collapsed on the ground from exhaustion, but now, I was getting more and more energetic, and my movements were getting faster and faster. Could this be the effect of that Nine Rainbow Divine Pill?

But even as I thought this, I didn't stop counting.

"One hundred ninety-nine, two hundred!" I stood up, full of energy, and said loudly, "Reporting, sir! Two hundred push-ups completed, please inspect."

The courtyard was silent. Only then did I realize that all eyes were on me, even Carter was no exception.

He came up to me, looked me over repeatedly, then suddenly turned and shouted to the prisoners in the courtyard, "From today on, Gavin Ford is your squad leader. Every move you make, every word you say, must fully comply with Gavin Ford's instructions. Disobey his orders, and you're disobeying mine—the consequences, I don't need to tell you. Dismissed!"

With that, Carter strode away, leaving behind a group of prisoners standing there in a daze.

I felt like I was dreaming: on my first day awake on the island, I had actually become the squad leader of all the prisoners!

"Gavin Ford, don't just stand there—greet everyone!" Old Fellow whispered in my ear. Only then did I snap out of it, but before I could speak, Old Fellow had already walked up to the prisoners with a big smile and said cheerfully, "Everyone, I am Smart Alec, the manager and spokesperson for Squad Leader Gavin Ford. If you have anything in the future, just come to me directly—I'll look out for you all."

Despicable, shameless Old Fellow—he actually stole my lines! Wait, why do I say he stole my lines? I stood there dumbfounded for a long time before I finally came to my senses and nodded to the prisoners who greeted me.